System for measuring interfloor traffic for group control of elevator cars

Abstract

An elevator passenger traffic measuring system distributes passengers whose destination floors cannot be determined to each of origin-destination floor pairs in accordance with an elevator car position, an incoming passenger number and an outgoing passenger number at each floor, and registered car calls, using probability weights for the origin-destination floor pairs which are determined by previous traffic measurements. The system then estimates the number of passengers for each of the origin-destination floor pairs in accordance with the distributed passengers, and the passengers who moved the corresponding one of the origin-destination floor pairs.

What we claim is: 
     
       1. A system comprising: position detecting means for detecting a position of an elevator car;   passenger number detecting means for detecting an outgoing passenger number and an incoming passenger number at each of floors at which said elevator car stops;   car call registering means for registering car calls for destination floors which are made by incoming passengers at each of the floors at which said elevator car stops;   a clock device;   hall call registering means for registering a hall call at each service floor;   interfloor traffic measuring means responsive to said position detecting means, said passenger number detecting means, said car call registering means and said hall call registering means for distributing the number of passengers into origin-destination floor pairs by adding, with respect to each of the origin-destination floor pairs, the number of passengers whose origin-destination floor pair can be uniquely determined from the incoming number of passengers and the registered car calls, and the number of passengers whose origin-destination floor pair cannot be uniquely determined from the incoming or outgoing number of passengers and the registered car calls, which is estimated in accordance with empirical probability weights which are derived from previous traffic measurements;   recording means for recording measured interfloor traffic responsive to said interfloor measuring means and said clock device; and   predicting means responsive to said interfloor traffic measuring means and said clock device for predicting average traffic per unit time for each of the origin-destination floor pairs, arrival time of said elevator car at a floor at which a hall call is registered, and destination floors of incoming passengers at the hall-call registered floor in accordance with the predicted arrival time of said elevator car and the predicted average traffic.   
     
     
       2. A system for measuring interfloor traffic of passengers utilizing an elevator car, comprising: position detecting means for detecting a position of said elevator car;   passenger number detecting means for detecting an outgoing passenger number and an incoming passenger number at each of floors at which said elevator car stops;   car call registering means for registering car calls for destination floors which are made by incoming passengers at each of the floors at which said elevator car stops; and   interfloor traffic measuring means responsive to said position detecting means, said passenger number detecting means and said car call registering means for distributing the number of passengers into origin-destination floor pairs by adding, with respect to each of the origin-destination floor pairs, the number of passenger whose origin-destination floor pair can be uniquely determined from the incoming number of passengers and the registered calls, and the number of passengers whose origin-destination floor pair cannot be uniquely determined from the incoming or outgoing number of passengers and the registered car calls, which is estimated in accordance with empirical probability weights which are derived from previous traffic measurements.   
     
     
       3. A system for recording interfloor traffic of passengers utilizing an elevator car comprising: position detecting means for detecting a position of said elevator car;   passenger number detecting means for detecting an outgoing passenger number and an incoming passenger number at each of floors at which said elevator car stops;   car call registering means for registering car calls for destination floors which are made by incoming passengers at each of the floors at which said elevator car stops;   a clock device; and   recording means, responsive to said position detecting means, said car call registering means, said passenger number detecting means, and said clock device, for measuring the interfloor traffic of passengers and for recording the measured interfloor traffic for each of origin-destination floor pairs and for each of predetermined time conditions.   
     
     
       4. A system according to claim 3 wherein the predetermined time conditions include the distinction of days of the week and the distinction of time periods in a day. 
     
     
       5. A system according to claim 3 wherein the predetermined time conditions include the distinction of a holiday and a weekday, and the distinction of time periods in each of the holiday and weekday. 
     
     
       6. A system according to claim 3 wherein the interfloor traffic is recorded for each of time periods determined by the time conditions after being weighed correspondingly to each of the time periods. 
     
     
       7. A system for predicting passenger traffic demand for an elevator car, comprising: position detecting means for detecting a position of said elevator car;   passenger number detecting means for detecting an outgoing passenger number and an incoming passenger number at each of floors at which said elevator car stops;   car call registering means for registering car calls for destination floors which are made by incoming passengers at each of the floors at which said elevator car stops;   a clock device;   hall call registering means for registering a hall call at each service floor; and   predicting means, responsive to said position detecting means, said passenger number detecting means, said car call registering means, said clock device, and said hall call registering means, for measuring traffic of passengers utilizing the elevator car between origin-destination floor pairs to predict an average traffic per unit time for each of the origin-destination floor pairs, for predicting arrival time of said elevator car at a floor at which a hall call is registered, and for predicting destination floors of incoming passengers at the hall-call registered floor in accordance with the predicted arrival time of said elevator car and the predicted average traffic.   
     
     
       8. A system according to claim 7 wherein the average traffic is obtained by adding a value obtained by weighing newly measured traffic of each of origin-destination floor pairs to previously measured traffic of the corresponding one of the origin-destination floor pairs. 
     
     
       9. A system according to claim 7 wherein, in addition to the destination floors of the incoming passengers at the hall call floor being predicted, the numbers of passengers to the destination floors are predicted. 
     
     
       10. A method of measuring interfloor traffic of passengers utilizing an elevator car, comprising the steps of: detecting a position of said elevator car;   detecting an incoming passenger number and an outgoing passenger number at each of floors at which said elevator car stops;   registering car calls for destination floors specified by incoming passengers at each of the floors at which said elevator car stops;   registering a hall call at each service floor; and   distributing the number of passengers into origin-destination floor pairs by adding, with respect to each of the origin-destination floor pairs, the number of passengers whose origin-destination floor pair can be uniquely determined from the incoming number of passengers and the registered car calls and the number of passengers whose origin-destination floor pair cannot be uniquely determined from the incoming or outgoing number of passengers and the registered car calls, which is estimated in accordance with empirical probability weights which are derived from previous traffic measurements.   
     
     
       11. A method of predicting passenger traffic demand for an elevator car, comprising the steps of: detecting a position of said elevator car;   detecting an incoming passenger number and an outgoing passenger number at each of floors at which said elevator car stops;   registered car calls for destination floors specified by incoming passengers at each of the floors at which said elevator car stops;   measuring traffic of passengers utilizing the elevator car between origin-destination floor pairs in response to a detected position of said elevator car, detected passenger number, and registered car calls to predict an average traffic per unit time for each of the origin-destination floor pairs;   predicting arrival time of said elevator car at a floor at which a hall call is registered; and   predicting destination floors of incoming passengers at the hall-call registered floor in accordance with the predicted arrival time and the predicted average traffic.